SUV Rollovers

The propensity of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) to rollover first came to light in 1980 when CBS’s 60 Minutes aired footage of an Insurance Institute of Highway Safety test in which a Jeep CJ rolled over while executing a “J” turn and during sudden quick turns. Since then the SUV has become one of the most popular vehicles in California and throughout the United States. Automakers have continued to disregard the safety of the public by ignoring SUV rollover problems. Drivers and passengers continue to die and be injured in SUV rollovers. According to the NHTSA 60 percent of SUV fatalities and 40 percent of SUV injuries are caused by rollover accidents.

If you have been injured or a loved one was killed in an SUV rollover accident in California, callThe Dolan Law Firm at 415-636-8160 or 888.452.4752for a free case evaluation. Our San Francisco product liability lawyers work to hold auto manufacturers responsible for injuries and deaths caused by defective and dangerous SUVs.

Automakers have long known that even the most stable SUV is more likely to rollover that the least stable passenger car. The size, weight, and height of an SUV make it prone to rollover accidents. They have a high center of gravity and a narrow track which makes SUVs so unstable. We want to put a stop to the design, manufacture, and sale of SUVs by Ford, GM, Toyota, Nissan and other companies which are dangerous, unstable, and not crashworthy. We fight for compensation on behalf of innocent victims who have been harmed by the auto industry’s greed and negligence.

Design Defects Leading to SUV Rollover Accidents

The injury lawyers at our firm represent people in product liability claims in connection with SUV rollover accidents and SUV defects such as:

High Center of Gravity

Instability

Lack of Roll Bar

Engineering Design Flaws

Steering Defects

Defective Tires

Lack of Side Air Bags

Defective Air Bags

Weak Roofs

Failure of Safety Restraint Systems

Failure to Include Electronic Stability Control

For determined, aggressive representation in SUV rollover litigation, contact the product liability lawyers at the Dolan Law Firm. We put the fair back in the fight.

NHTSA completes 2005 SUV Crash, Rollover Ratings

Results at Safercar.Gov

Model year 2005 Acura MDX, Ford Freestyle, and Jeep Grand Cherokee earned the top rating of 5-stars for all available seating positions in frontal and side crash tests announced the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in their SUV Crash Test Summary. All results are available at www.safercar.gov.

New 2005 ratings for side impact are available for the following SUVs: Honda Element, Hyundai Santa Fe with side air bags, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Nissan Murano with side air bags, Nissan Pathfinder and Nissan Xterra.

NHTSA crash test ratings apply to both 4×2 and 4×4 versions of the same make and model. Separate rollover testing is done for 4×2 and 4×4 versions of 2005 models selected for rollover testing.

^ = During the side-impact test, the driver door became unlatched and swung open. The Rendezvous is equipped with standard Automatic Door Locks (ADL). NHTSA test protocol disables ADL during testing. A General Motors test showed that the door remained closed under similar test conditions when the ADL was activated. A door opening during a side impact crash increases the likelihood of occupant ejection. This test result is a carryover from earlier model years.

^^ = During the side-impact test, the head of the left rear passenger dummy struck the side upper interior structure, causing a high head acceleration. High head accelerations have a higher likelihood of serious head trauma.

Buick Rainier, Chevrolet Trailblazer, GMC Envoy, Isuzu Ascender and Saab 9-7x are corporate twins of one another and share the same test results for the frontal crash results. With the exception of the Saab 9-7x, they also share the same side crash results.

(1): if involved in a single-vehicle crash
(2): The rollover results are valid for vehicles produced after February 28, 2005, when ESC became standard.
(3): The rollover results are valid for vehicles produced after January 28, 2005, when ESC became standard.
(4): The rollover results are valid for 4-wheel drive models produced after November 29, 2004 with ESC as an option and for all vehicles produced after January 28, 2005, when ESC became standard.
(5): The rollover results are valid for vehicles produced on or after May 16, 2005 and to those whose software has been modified as part of a customer service campaign that was initiated by the manufacturer in June 2005.

Cadillac Escalade EXT and Chevrolet Avalanche are corporate twins of one another and share the same test results. Cadillac ESV, Chevrolet Suburban and GMC Yukon XL are corporate twins of one another and share the same test results. Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon are corporate twins of one another and share the same test results.

The personal injury attorneys at The Dolan Law Firm help people who have been injured in truck accidents and car accidents in the San Francisco Bay Area and throughout Northern California including the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Fresno, Lake, Marin, Monterey, Napa, Orange, Sacramento, Santa Clara, San Joaquin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Rosa and Stanislaus; the cities of Alameda, Berkeley, Eureka, Fremont, Fresno, Hayward, Modesto, Oakland, Palo Alto, Petaluma, Sacramento, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Raphael, Santa Rosa, Stockton, San Jose, San Mateo, and Walnut Creek; and on highways 101, 1, 580, 880, 24, 137, 4, 280, 17, 157 and more.

$6 million Settlement Wrongful death car accident case filed on behalf of family of woman killed in a head-on collision when defendant's car crossed the center line.

$4.2 million Settlement Settlement reached with City of San Francisco for teen walking in crosswalk who suffered permanent brain injury after being struck by vehicle. City officials were informed intersection was dangerous and failed to make it safer.